Upper Peninsula Books

Here's a list of books about the Upper Peninsula or set in the UP.   I haven't read all of these, but I compiled them from our MTU Parents facebook group suggestions

Gertie Johnson Mystery Book Series by Deb Baker is set in Escanaba...."laugh out loud funny"

Gathering Prey by John Sanford.  This book in the thriller series is set in the UP

The Sweater Letter by Dave Distal.  True crime book set in the UP.

The Worth Series by Mara Jacobs.  Romances set in the Keweenaw.  You'll immediately recognize the setting....The Ambassador is called the "Commodore" for example

Joseph Heywood Woods Cop series mysteries about a conservation officer Grady Service set in the UP.  Also Red Jacket, a historical thriller set in the Keweenaw

Wolf's Mouth by John Smolens a thrilling story of good versus evil: part Upper Peninsula woods adventure, part rags-to-riches tale, part love story.

Y is For Yooper by Scott Reddinger.   An ABC book for people of all ages

South of Superior by Ellen Airgood.  Heartwarming novel set in Grand Marais

The Way North:  Collected Upper Peninsula New Works edited by Ron Riekki. Poetry, fiction, and non-fiction from memorable, varied voices that are writing from and about Michigan's Upper Peninsula.  Also check out Here: Women's Writing on the Upper Peninsula.

Anatomy of Murder  by Robert Traver.   This courtroom drama set near Marquette was made into a movie starring James Stewart.   Traver was the pen name of John D. Voelker, a Michigan Supreme Court Justice.  He wrote many books under that name, often about courtroom dramas, or fly fishing, or both! Check out Trout Madness

Many books by arguably Michigan's most famous author, Jim Harrison are set in the UP.   He lived near Grand Marais for many years before moving to Montana.   Check out his novella series Brown Dog

Death at the Lighthouse: A Grand Island Riddle by Loren Graham.  True crime story set in the UP.   Also check out his book A Face in the Rock: The Tale of the Grand Island Chippewa

MTU Grad Tom Maringer wrote A Superior State of Affairs, a futuristic state of affairs that is set in Houghton/Hancock area. 

Misery Bay by Steve Hamilton part of the Alex McNight series is a thriller set in the Keweenaw and features MTU students as characters.

The Birchbark House by Louise Erdich is a historical children's book set in the UP about life as a Native American

Snow Country by Kristin Neva.   A Christian romance set in Copper Island (aka the part of the Keweenaw north of the lift bridge)

Wall of Silver by Richard Kellogg.  Suspense treasure hunting story set in the Keweenaw

Sweet Girl by Travis Mulhauser is a novel set in the UP, one of Michigan's Notable books of 2017

Nevada Barr's Superior Death and Winter Study part of the Anna Pigeon series of mystery thrillers.

Nonfiction books about the Keweenaw's mining history by MTU professor Larry Lankton 

So Cold a Sky: Upper Peninsula Weather Stories by meteorologist Karl Bohnak, Check out the chapter on MTU alumni's favorite weather story about Thanksgiving Drive '85

Hiking Michigan's Upper Peninsula and Moon Michigan's Upper Peninsula

My Brother's Mountain by John Timmerman,  Middle school level historical fiction novel about the C&H strike in Calumet 

Rock Down, Coal Up by Chuck Pomazai. History of the Quincy and Torch Lake railroad

Boom Copper by Angus Murdoch. Vintage classic book about Keweenaw Copper Mining

Mine Towns by MTU professor Alison Hoagland about the area's copper mining towns

Any of the books about the UP by local writer Lon Emerick

Is This an Agate? by Susan Robinson.   A must for Lake Superior rock hounds

Michigan's Upper Peninsula and Copper Harbor  coffee table books featuring beautiful photography by Steve Brim

Yankee Yooper on the Keweenaw by Phillip J Howard Enjoy the adventures of a surgeon working and exploring the land around the lake, the Keweenaw, the Copper Country history, the Okibwa and Chippewa Indians, and more.

Michigan's Columbus by Steve Lehto.   Biography of Douglass Houghton

Time By Moments Steals Away by Robert Root. 1848 jounral of Rugh Douglas, who lived on Isle Royale

Diaries of an Isle Royale Fisherman by Elling Heglem Journal written about his live in the 1910s on Isle Royale.

Becoming Wilderness: Nature, History and the Making of Isle Royale National Park by Amalia Tholen Baldwin

 Naked in the Stream: Isle Royale Stories by Vic Foerster.  After thirty years worth of visits to Isle Royale National Park, Foerster records his experiences in this narrative. Funny and poignant, riveting and heart thumping, these true stories entertain and inform the reader

The Wolves of Isle Royale: A Broken Balance by Rolf Peterson Fascinating first-hand account of the relationship that exists between the wolf and the moose on the island.

A View from Wolf's Eye by Carolyn Peterson Her reflections of spending 30+ summers on the island. 

Spaghetti on Mondays by Tom Flaminio (MTU grad), about their family of 10 kids growing up in Iron Mountain.

Copper Country Journal: The Diary of Schoolmaster Henry Hobart, 1863-1864 Read about some of the people buried in the old hidden Cliff Mine cemetery and then walk out in the woods and find the specific grave. Really makes the history feel real.

Local history booklets by Clarence Monette

The Page One mystery series by Nancy Barr are set in the western UP

A Transplanted Yooper: Mostly True Stories Of Michigan's U.P. by Tina Lonski

Drummond Girls by Mardi Link, a notable Michigan author.   This memoir is about the exploits of her BFFs on the island.

Wild Shore: Exploring Lake Superior By Kayak by Greg Breining

Dandelion Cottage by Carol Rankin.  First published in 1904 children's novel. She first wrote the story for her own children, based in Marquette

Lake Superior Journal by Jim Marshall  Essays about the Big Lake

Island Life: An Isle Royale Nature Guide by Ted Gostomski and Janet Marr

The Sandstone Architecture of the Lake Superior Region by Kathryn Bishop Eckert

  

Strangers and Sojourners: A History of Michigan’s Keweenaw Peninsula by Arthur W. Thurner

Lake Superior Profiles : People on the Big Lake by John Gagnon

You Wouldn't Like it Here and You Still Wouldn't Like it Here by Lon Emerick

Nick Adams Stories by Ernest Hemingway

Women of the Copper Country Maria Doria Russell historical fiction set in the copper mining era

Michigan vs. The Boys by Carrie S. Allen YA novel set in Houghton/Hancock

North to Iron Country by Janie Lynn Panagopoulos. children's adventure books

Nancy Barr Page One Series is written by a MTU Alum and Professor

Isle Royale by John Hamilton

The Marsh King's Daughter by Karen Dionne

The Sweater Letter by Lynn and Dave Distel

The Way North: Collected Upper Peninsula New Works by Ron Riekki

Here: Women Writing the Upper Peninsula and And Here: 100 Years of Upper Peninsula Writing by Ron Riekki

All About the Singing of the Sirens that Sank the Fitz by Paul E. Hainault (ME Prof)

Ursula, Under by Ingrid Hull

Mine Towns: Buildings for Workers in Michigan's Copper Country by by Alison K. Hoagland

Firekeeper's Daughter by Angeline Boulley  YA thriller about a Native teen who must root out the corruption in her community

We Kept Our Towns Going: The Gossard Girls of Michigan's Upper Peninsula by Phyllis Wong Phyllis Michael Wong tells the stories of the Gossard Girls, women who sewed corsets and bras at factories in Ishpeming and Gwinn from the early twentieth century to the 1970s.

Tin Camp Road by Ellen Airgood  Novel about a young single mother and her ten-year-old daughter stand up to the trials of rural poverty and find the community they need in order to survive

Manoomin: The Story of Wild Rice in Michigan by Barbara J. Barton

The Mason House by T. Marie Bertineau is at once an elegy for lost loved ones and a tale of growing up amid hardship and hope, exploring how time and the support of a community can at last begin to heal even the deepest wounds

  

Signs and Seasons

"Uh oh....Venus in Pisces....not a pretty sight!" sighed Margaret, one of my college friends who was consulting her astrological charts regarding my love life.  "What does that mean?" I asked.  "Venus in Pisces means you will forever be unlucky in love" she said, shaking her head.  "The best thing you can do is look for a Gemini or another Aquarius and see if that works", she proclaimed with a sad finality.   I wondered how I could have such a bad prognosis when we were supposedly living in the Age of Aquarius.....  and I am an Aquarius...isn't that supposed to be good?

Flash forward 30 years later, and I do think I was lucky in love, as I've been married to the same man for almost 25 years. Perhaps it worked out because he is another Aquarius, like Margaret suggested?  Otherwise, I haven't paid much attention to my astrology, but I was intrigued when the good people at Harper Collins asked me to review a new cookbook they sent to me, Signs and Seasons.

I had my family over for dinner yesterday, and consulted the book to determine what I should make.   The recipes are organized by star sign (seasonally) which is fine, but I wasn't sure if I was supposed to make Aquarian recipes because that's what I am, or Taurus recipes because we are in Taurus right now.   My daughter, currently pursuing a BFA, noted that the artwork is beautiful in this book.  Indeed, one of the authors, Amy Zerner is an award winning artist.  The recipes looked promising, they are written by John Okas, a personal chef in the Hamptons.  I saw a recipe for peas, but forgot to mark the page, and couldn't find it later.  I checked the index under "peas" and it wasn't there.   The book needs a better index.   I was trying to remember if  I was looking in the Taurus section, so I looked up "Taurus" in the index and there was nothing there! No listing at all for Taurus.  I looked in Aquarius....nothing there either.  I wondered if my confusion must be happening because Mercury is in retrograde.   Finally,  I started paging through the book and eventually found the recipe I remembered.....it was for "snap peas" .   And it was in Gemini, not in Taurus!  Oh well.

I didn't have any snap peas, but I made this recipe instead with green peas, and everyone loved it.  Here's how I did it:

Sesame Green Peas

3 T sesame oil
1 lb frozen peas
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 T sesame seeds
2 T soy sauce

Heat the oil in a large skillet, and when hot, add peas, garlic and sesame seeds and stir fry until pease are hot, about 5 minutes.  Dress with soy sauce.

Since I'm not seriously into astrology, I don't think I can comment much on the writing.   The artwork in the book is lovely and the recipes look promising    I wish the book had a better index and food photography.    I think this book would make a great gift for a person that is really into their star sign.

Tart Lemon Cake with Fresh Lemon Frosting

I have been a part of a great online community on facebook called Michigan Tech Parents because my son is a student there.  Everyone is so supportive and I have made some new friends on the list.   Last weekend, the students came home for the summer, and parents were talking about the food they were planning on making.   One mom said she was making a lemon cake and I adore lemon, so I asked her for the recipe.   She kindly posted pictures of her handwritten recipe for me to try.  It was delicious.   I tweaked a few things, and here is how I did it:

Tart Lemon Cake


1 c. (2 sticks) butter, softened
2 c. granulated sugar
4 c. all purpose flour
1.5 t. baking soda
1 t. granulated salt
6 lemons
4 eggs
1 c. milk

Preheat oven to 350 F. Using a stand mixer, cream the butter and sugar.   In another bowl, mix together the flour, salt and soda with a fork.  Using a lemon zester (I love my Microplane) zest the lemons until you have 4 tablespoons. then juice the lemons.   I like to use a lemon squeezer for this.....you should have 1/2 cup.   If not, add water to make a half cup.   Divide the zest and juice in half and reserve the remaining for the frosting.     In a small bowl. whisk the eggs until the whites and yolks are well mixed, add 1/4 cup lemon juice, 2 T. zest and the milk and mix well.  

Add half the dry mixture and half the liquid to the the mixer bowl with the creamed sugar and butter, and mix well.  Scrape down the sides and add remaining dry mixture and and lquid.   Mix until well incorporated.   The mixture will be thick.  

Grease and flour 2 9" cake pans.  Using a spatula, divide the batter into both pans and vigorously tap the pans on the counter until level.   Bake for 30-35 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean.  Cool in the pan on a wire rack 15 minutes, then remove from pans and continue cooling on wire rack.

Fresh Lemon Frosting
(you will need to make 2 batches)

2/3 c. softened butter
9 c. powdered sugar
half of reserved lemon juice mixture
half of the reserved lemon zest
1 1/2 t. vanilla
1/4 c. milk (approximately)

In a stand mixer bowl, cream butter and sugar.   Add lemon juice and zest and mix until creamy.  Add enough milk to make a softer icing for piping,   Make up second batch.  Frost using a Wilton 1M tip as described in my other blog post.   It really is pretty easy.....I'm not a great cake decorator but the big tip doesn't require much precision.

I really liked this recipe....I think next time I make it, I'll make it with the cream cheese frosting in my other post.   Thank you fellow MTU parent Cindy for the inspiration!  My family loved this cake.